


Little Green Hat

by YukiSetsu



Series: 12 Days of (Lance) Whumpmas [11]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Pneumonia, Sickfic, even when he's suffering, lance with children makes me happy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-03
Updated: 2018-01-03
Packaged: 2019-02-27 16:58:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13252593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YukiSetsu/pseuds/YukiSetsu
Summary: In hindsight, Lance knew that walking around in the cold when he was that sick was a bad idea.





	Little Green Hat

**Author's Note:**

> idk why it was so hard for me to think of a story i actually wanted to write out for this prompt but loRD here we are;;; i’m weak for lance w/ children
> 
> i think it’s because i was more excited brainstorming for the free day LOL hopefully i get that out before the 7th ahhHH

“Guys, I think I'm really sick.” Lance moaned from the sofa, trying to wrap his hoodie tighter around himself.

“Yeah, you've said it like fifty times already.” Keith grumbled. He blew out an irritated breath as he typed at his laptop a bit too aggressively. “There are seriously no good sources on this topic.”

The others didn't reply, busy typing or scrolling away on their own respective laptops with an air of exhausted resignation. Lance watched them gathered around the table from his spot on the sofa with half-open eyes. They'd all gathered at Hunk's apartment that morning in a last-minute rush to finish this group project before the midnight deadline. Quite frankly, Lance was more impressed that they all managed to sign up for the same Communications course.

“Hunk, buddy. You got any cough medicine?” Lance called out again. He coughed for good measure, grimacing at how wet and gross it sounded. Geez, his colds were never this bad.

“Uh...” Hunk furrowed his brow as he scanned something on his screen before slumping back against his seat. “You can check, but I think I ran out.”

Lance groaned, his head falling lightly against the cushion. “Guess I'll just wither away, then. Bring flowers to my funeral.”

“Lance, sorry you have a cold, but we're literally trying to save our grades right now.” Pidge said, her fingers still in constant motion over the keyboard as she talked. She looked like she was running on less than 5 hours of sleep, which was probably true. “Help us finish and I'll buy you all the cough medicine you want afterwards.”

“Hey, I did my part and _more_ by yesterday night.” Lance sniffled, rubbing at his arms in a slight attempt to get warm. “Not my fault the rest of you decided to procrastinate. And looking at computer screens would hurt my head right now.” Another cough, this one harsh and raw against his throat. “I'm not trying to be dramatic, but I think this is worse than a cold.”

Pidge groaned as she ran a hand through her hair. “Look, Lance, please let us concentrate for a bit. We're already gonna be cutting it close at the rate we're going. If you're just going to complain and not help, do it somewhere else.”

Lance winced at her words, a sharp jab in his chest. But then irritation settled in, and Lance pushed himself to his feet, swaying a bit when the blood rushed to his head. He already felt crappy enough—he wasn't in the mood to feel worse. He grabbed his jacket, slinging it on as he headed towards the door.

“Fine,” he said. “I'm heading out.”

Shiro finally tore his gaze away from his laptop, a pitying look in his eyes. “Lance, we didn't mean—”

“Nah, I get it. Sorry for feeling sick. I'll go deal with it on my own.” Lance grumbled, tugging the door open. “I'm gonna go buy medicine. Don't worry, I'll take my time.” He slammed the door shut before he could hear anyone else respond. Or maybe they didn't.

But when the early winter breeze hit his face once he stepped outside, Lance almost considered giving up and making the walk of shame back up to Hunk's apartment. It wasn't cold enough to start snowing yet, but it was definitely chilly. Lance shivered as he coughed again into his elbow. He felt phlegm come up in this time, and he grimaced as he dug into his jacket pocket. Fortunately, he felt a few wadded up tissues in there and he spit into it.

“Ugh, gross.” Lance trudged past a garbage can, tossing the used tissue ball inside before shoving his hands into his pockets. At least the convenience store wasn't too far. He took one hand out to pull up his hood, grumbling when the wind pushed it back off his head.

The store was only two blocks away, yet by the time Lance passed through the automatic doors, he felt like he ran a mile. He bent over to catch his breath, feeling it rattle in his lungs in an unpleasant way. A stab of pain hit his chest when he tried for a deeper breath, something he probably should've paid more attention to. Another cough built up, just as loud and wet as before. He should buy portable tissues while he was at it.

After a few seconds, he pushed himself back up and headed towards the aisles. He went towards the pharmacy area first, picking out a box of extra-strength cold medicine first. He blew out a sigh, turning to peer down the rest of the aisle. Heck, he'll just walk around the store and see what else there was. Better to stay in here than walk around outside, anyways.

Halfway through his tour, he passed by a row of portable tissues and grabbed one for himself. He felt his throat itch, tempted to open the tissues right then and there before another cough hit him. The phlegm felt nasty, to say the least. He resumed his pace around the store, trying to get warmth back into his body. He was still cold, despite the noisy heater he could hear blasting air down the aisles.

He reached the register right when his eyes caught a row of mouth masks. It took only a bit of contemplation before Lance grabbed a blue one, adding it to his pile of purchases. Maybe it could keep half of his face somewhat warm once he was back outside.

One purchase later, Lance stepped out into the streets, managing to open the wad of tissues and coughing into it in time. Phlegm would never _not_ feel disgusting. Lance grumbled, opening the package for the mouth mask and sliding it on. It helped, but it still felt cold as hell.

Lance started to walk again, bag of cough medicine hanging loosely from his wrist as his hands found their way back into his pockets. How long had it been so far? He was too cold to dig out his phone from his pocket and check the time. He was pretty sure it had only been a few minutes. Lance sighed, heading back towards the apartment nonetheless. Whatever, he'd just take the medicine and nap it off. At least he'd be quiet.

But the sound of someone crying stopped him in his tracks. Lance tore his eyes off the sidewalk, eyes easily locating the source of the noise just ahead. It was a little kid, bundled up in a bright orange jacket and green hat. He literally looked like a pumpkin. Lance would've found it adorable, had the kid not been bawling his eyes out, standing off the side as people passed by, not batting an eye to the commotion.

Lance felt his stomach tug at the sight. It was obvious no one even stopped to try and help so far. Maybe it was too cold, or they were all busy, or no one wanted to deal with the situation. Lance frowned, walking over to the kid and stopping right in front. An older man nearly crashed into him, grumbling out something Lance pointedly chose to ignore. He bent down, trying to look friendly despite the mask covering half his face.

“Hey kiddo, what's wrong?” Lance asked, ignoring the exhaustion settling in his legs at the strain.

The child quieted down once he spotted Lance, the cries quieting down to whimpers and loud sniffles. Lance waited, giving the kid a few seconds to catch his breath.

“I—I lost my mom.” He finally said, voice trembling.

Lance bent down a bit more so that was looking up at the kid instead. He smiled, hoping it at least showed in his eyes. “Well you're in luck! How about I help you find her? I'm sure she's worried sick looking for you, too.”

The boy sniffled. “My mom said I shouldn't follow strangers.”

Lance nodded, biting back a shudder when another strong gust of wind passed by. “Yeah, your mom's right. I'm glad she taught you that.” He thought for a second. “Do you know your mom's phone number?”

The boy's eyes widened, and he nodded. Lance shifted, reaching into his pocket to pull out his phone. His hands felt numb, fingers trembling just slightly even as he went to unlock his screen. “Can you tell me her number? I can call her for you.”

Another nod. Lance smiled again. “You're a smart kid, you know that? What's your name?”

The kid smiled at that, small and tremulous. “Connor.”

“Awesome name. My name's Lance. Alright, how about we call your mom?”

Connor recited the number, and Lance managed to punch in the digits before bringing the phone to his ear. The line picked up after one ring, the voice on the other end frantic.

“Hello?!” It was a woman's voice, high and shrill.

Lance swallowed the urge to cough, his throat itchy and uncomfortable. “Hi, is this Connor's mother?”

The woman sucked in a harsh breath. “It is. Have you seen him?! Is he alright?”

“He's okay, just a bit scared. I found him standing on a sidewalk. My name's Lance. Could I ask where you are?”

He could've sworn she mumbled some sort of prayer halfway through his explanation. “Oh thank goodness, thank you so much. I'm... I'm at Main Park. I thought he might've stumbled this way and was looking everywhere.”

Lance tried to estimate the distance. He hadn't been around Hunk's neighborhood much, but he'd passed by Main Park more than a few times. It wasn't too far off. “I think we're a 10 minute walk away from there. If it's alright, I can bring him to you.”

“Are—are you sure?” The mother asked, hesitant. “You've already done so much by finding my child... I can try to go to where you are and—”

“It's because Connor and I are kinda blocking traffic on the sidewalk, so we're probably gonna have to move soon anyways.” Lance said, trying to warm his free hand in his pocket. “I'll get him to you as soon as I can. We can stay on the phone while we walk, if you want.”

“My battery is almost gone, unfortunately. I'm grateful you managed to call before it completely died. I'd be so thankful if you could bring him here, Lance. Thank you. Could I speak to Connor for a moment?”

“Of course! One second.” Lance turned back towards Connor, who was watching him with wide eyes. He passed down the phone. “Here, your mom wants to talk to you.”

Connor lit up, grabbing the phone and pushing it towards his ear eagerly. Lance took the chance to pull his mask down and cough into his elbow again, rummaging for the tissues and spitting once more. Geez, he'd only been standing for the past few minutes and he still felt winded. He slid the mask back up, closing his eyes as he tried to fight off the small wave of dizziness that rolled through.

“Okay. Bye mom!” Lance looked over as Connor handed the phone back. “Thank you, sir!”

Lance laughed, taking the phone. “It's Lance, not 'sir'. You're gonna make me feel old.” He pocketed his phone before holding out a hand. “Come on, let's go to your mom.”

Connor's smile was bright, even with his reddened nose and splotchy cheeks. He reached up a small gloved hand, gripping onto Lance's tightly. “Okay, Lance!”

Lance felt his grin grow as they started moving down the sidewalk. Connor reminded him of one of his younger siblings, and he felt his heart tug at the thought of his family. He hadn't seen them in a while because of school.

“So Connor,” Lance started. “What do you like to do when you're bored?”

Connor hummed, swinging their hands a bit as they walked. “Watching TV!”

“Oh yeah? What kind of things do you like to watch?”

“Cartoons! And space!”

Lance laughed again, although he couldn't stop the small processions of coughs this time. “Space? I like that too! Do you wanna go there one day?”

“Yeah! I wanna fight all the aliens and fly a spaceship!”

“Sounds awesome. You can be a defender of the universe or something.”

Connor nodded, eyes sparkling. “Yeah!”

The conversation was cut short when another coughing fit came, and Lance had to stop to deal with it. His chest throbbed painfully at the motion, and he bit down a groan as he fished out some more tissues with his free hand. He pulled his mask down, spitting again and wadding up the tissues into a ball.

He felt Connor tug at his hand once he tossed the wad into a trashcan they passed by. “Are you sick, Lance?”

Lance gave a small smile, pointing at his mask as he pulled it back up. “Yeah, it's why I'm wearing this. So other people around me don't catch it. Like you.”

Connor frowned. “Mom said you should rest in bed when you're sick.”

Lance huffed out a laugh, gently tugging Connor back into step with him. “Yeah, she's right. I'm gonna go home and rest once we find your mom.”

Connor stopped in his tracks and Lance looked down to catch him tugging his hat off, revealing a mess of short, brown hair. He held it up towards Lance, a determined look on his face. “Wear my hat. It'll keep you warm.”

Lance's eyes widened, and he took the hat, only to quickly put it back on Connor's head. He tried to pull away, but Lance was persistent enough to succeed. “I'm warm. Don't worry about me, buddy. You should worry about yourself.”

Connor's frown pulled down into a pout. He held up the hand that was still gripping Lance's. “But you're shaking.”

Sure enough, he was. Hard enough that even he could tell with the wind stinging at his eyes. Wow, that was embarrassing. Lance gave Connor's hand a light squeeze, straightening up. “I'm okay, promise. Besides, your glove is warming me up plenty.” He glanced a bit down the road, spotting a familiar sign at the corner. “Oh, I think that's the park over there! Let's go. Your mom's probably worried sick.”

It was a relief that kids got distracted easily, and Connor whipped around towards where Lance was pointing, his eyes brightening at the park sign. He walked a bit faster, tugging Lance along insistently. Lance wouldn't have minded, except he really did not have the energy to be moving faster than the pace he'd been going. But they were almost there, and so Lance let Connor lead him.

By the time they passed through the park gates, it was miracle that Lance was still standing. He felt like he was going to throw up, even though all he'd done was speed walk a block. He bent down, letting his legs press against his chest as he tried to take a full breath. His chest ached with each attempt, and all he could manage were small wheezes.

Someone—Connor—was tugging at his hand again, and he heard him yell something before another pair of hands were on his shoulders. He glanced up, spotting a woman in front of him. She looked frazzled, her brown hair in a messy bun as she mouthed something that looked suspiciously like his name.

“—re you alright?" A hand pressed against his forehead, remarkably cool against his skin. "Goodness, you look terrible. Are you alone? Where do you live?”

“He's sick, mommy.” Connor said from somewhere to the side. “He said that's why he's wearing the mask.”

She rummaged in her pockets before glancing back up. “Lance, can you hear me? Could I get your phone? Mine's out of battery. I need to call an ambulance.”

Lance jerked at the mention of an ambulance, falling back onto his butt. He coughed, shuddering at the stabbing pain in his chest. “N-no ambulance. I just... need to rest.”

Her brow furrowed with concern. “Are you sure—”

“Yes,” Lance curled his legs close against him when another gust of wind passed by. When he tried to wrap his arms around his legs, he realized that Connor was still holding fast onto one of his hands. “My—my friend's apartment... He doesn't live far from here...”

The mother's eyes widened. “Friend? What's his name?”

“Hunk...”

Lance felt someone suddenly dig into his jacket pocket, and he looked over just as Connor straightened up, triumphantly holding up his cell phone. “I found it!”

His mother took the phone with a slight smile. She looked at Lance while she unlocked it—Lance really should put a passcode on his phone—and she shifted a bit closer, as if to try and block the wind from hitting him too much. “Is Hunk in your contact list?” Lance nodded, shuddering in another slight breath. “I'm going to call him over here to pick you up. You're in no condition to move.”

Lance didn't have the energy to respond, letting his head fall lightly against her stomach as she tapped away at his phone. He thought it might be rude, but she didn't seem to mind. She wrapped an arm around his shoulder as she began to speak, not to him. Guess Hunk picked up.

And then came the wait. He was pretty sure Connor's mom told him that his friends were on the way, but he didn't know what she said exactly. Halfway through, Connor had decided to drape himself over Lance in a small version of a bearhug in his attempt to “warm Lance up”. It was adorable, and Lance might have appreciated more had he not been so out of it. But it was too hard to breathe, and he was so tired.

He didn't remember falling asleep, but when he woke, it was to the rumbling of a car. He'd barely gotten his senses oriented enough figure out what was happening when another cough ripped its way out, and he reflexively brought a hand up to cover it. His mouth mask was gone, he realized. And he was lying on his side.

Someone was rubbing at his back, and Lance craned to see who it was once the cough left his system. Hunk stared back, looking more stressed than when Lance had left the apartment. Oh, he was lying on Hunk's lap.

Lance grinned weakly. “Did you guys finish the project?”

Hunk actually winced, which Lance didn't understand. “Keith and Pidge are finishing it up right now. That's not important. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have let you leave. None of us should have.”

Lance shifted back so that the side of his head was resting against Hunk's lap again, his breaths coming out in short wheezes. “... 's fine. I was being annoying.”

“It's _not_ fine.” Hunk hissed. “Do you not see yourself right now? You _told_ us you were feeling really sick and none of us did anything. Us stressing over the project shouldn't have been an excuse. Pidge feels terrible about what she said, just so you know.”

“Hunk's right,” Shiro called out from the driver's seat. Lance could only see one of his arms from where he was laying. “We all need to apologize, but let's get you to a doctor first.”

Lance groaned, too tired to move and do anything else. “I don't need one...”

“You look like you're about to die, so you do.” Hunk said. “We're not taking any chances.”

To be honest, Lance didn't want to either. He felt like complete shit, and he wasn't sure if the cold medicine he bought was going to be much help. Hunk kept a helpful drone of chatter to keep him distracted, rubbing at his back every time he coughed and sometimes rubbing at his arms as if to try and warm him up. Guess he was still shivering.

When they got to the doctor, Hunk had to piggyback him in, but Lance was too exhausted to feel embarrassed at this point. He thought it was just going to be some bad case of the flu, but after a couple of tests and a diagnosis of mild pneumonia, Lance was glad they ended up going to the hospital. Clearly Hunk and Shiro felt the same, because they both paled when the doctor announced the results. He got an order of antibiotics and a rigid schedule of rest and hydration before Hunk carried him back to the car and they headed back to the apartment.

He must have fallen asleep again, because he didn't remember how he got from the car and into bed. He woke up to a darkened room, Hunk ordering him to drink a bottle of water and take the antibiotics before going back to sleep. Lance wanted to sleep, but he kept waking himself up every time he coughed. Thankfully, Hunk left a box of tissues next to the bed, and he didn't have to move much to grab some every time he coughed up phlegm. But nonetheless, it wasn't an easy slumber.

The next time he woke up, the lights were on. He groaned, squinting at the brightness as he rolled over to bury his eyes into the pillow. He tried for another deep breath, but the sharp pain sent him into another coughing fit. Well, he just started the antibiotic treatment. Results weren't going to come right away.

“Lance?”

Lance opened his eyes at Pidge's voice, spotting her just next to the bed. She looked more exhausted than he remembered her to be, if that was even possible. But her eyes brightened a bit when he caught her gaze, and she glanced over her shoulder towards the door. “Guys! Lance is awake!”

There was a rumbling of footsteps before the others piled in, all eyeing him worriedly. It felt... uncomfortable, to say the least.

“Uh... hi.” Lance wheezed, relaxing against the pillow. “The project?”

Pidge grimaced. “It's done. Don't worry about it.” She stepped back, dragging Keith forward next to her. “I know Hunk and Shiro kind of apologized already, but we have to, too. Especially me.”

Lance blew out a breath. “It's alright, I get it. You don't have to—”

“No, I do.” Pidge cut in. “I shouldn't have told you to leave, even if I was stressed. It was an asshole move and I'm really, _really_ sorry. Even if you weren't sick, I never should've said something like that. I might act like it sometimes, but I don't really think you're annoying. I'm sorry for that, too.”

A brief pause, and Pidge not-so-subtly elbowed Keith's arm. He coughed awkwardly, rubbing at the sore spot. “I'm sorry for getting stressed out at you. I was so focused on trying to finish the project that I didn't take you seriously when you said you were feeling sick.”

Lance tugged at the blankets, uncomfortable. “Okay, uh, no more apologizing. Feeling a bit awkward now. You're all forgiven, it's fine.” He coughed again, loud and grating, and pulled up the blankets to cover himself. He peeked back out after it passed. “You guys should leave, though. You might get sick.”

Keith groaned. “Seriously, _that's_ what you're worried about? You just focus on getting better. Pneumonia's serious.”

“Mild pneumonia,” Lance corrected.

“It's literally still pneumonia.”

“Whatever.”

Keith blew out a breath as he crossed his arms. “Anyways, you should go back to sleep. We'll be outside if you need anything.”

“Yes, yes.” Lance mumbled, eyes starting to droop shut. He wouldn't deny he was still dead tired, and sleep sounded just great right now.

“Oh, wait!” Hunk piped up, making his way towards the bed. He pulled out something from behind his back and set it on the bed. “The kid you helped earlier asked me to give this to you before we left the park.” Hunk grinned. “He said to wear it whenever you needed to get warm.”

Lance glanced at the small green hat, a grin tugging at his face. That definitely wouldn't fit on his head. He didn't doubt it would feel warm, though.

 


End file.
